The stars of sci-fi film Dune: Part Three will head to Abu Dhabi this month as filming begins for the third instalment of the blockbuster franchise. Hollywood actor Jason Momoa, who plays swordmaster Duncan Idaho, was spotted in Dubai at the weekend at a brand launch. He will be joined soon by the rest of the film's stellar cast, including lead stars Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya.
Abu Dhabi was confirmed as a shooting location for Dune: Part Three by Abu Dhabi Film Commission in August, who said filming was set to begin "later this year".
The commission, along with Abu Dhabi's Creative Media Authority, will provide logistical support, while production company Image Nation will be a production partner for the UAE leg of the shoot.
Here's what we know so far about Dune: Part Three in Abu Dhabi.
What role does Abu Dhabi play?
“The sweeping dunes of Liwa desert return to the big screen as filming begins in Abu Dhabi later this year for the next chapter in the Dune saga,” Abu Dhabi Film Commission posted on Instagram.
Both Dune and Dune: Part Two, which were major box office blockbusters, were also shot in Abu Dhabi, with the desert's vast, open landscape serving as the setting for the fictional planet Arrakis.
An entire village was built in the middle of the desert for the production of Dune: Part Two, with more than 1,000 people working on the film. “What I found in Abu Dhabi is unmatchable. There’s a scale to the dunes and the desert in a variety of shapes that we thought was absolutely mesmerising,” director Denis Villeneuve said in 2021.
“There are also some climatic conditions there that were perfect for us because of the proximity to the city; it's like a strange kind of haze in that air that I was looking for that matched totally with the look of the film.”
There was a significant jump in Abu Dhabi's involvement between the first and second films in the series. The first instalment – released in 2021 – comprised five days of filming in the emirate. For the second, the production team spent almost a month in the desert.
Which stars will be in Abu Dhabi?
Besides Zendaya and Chalamet, the rest of the film's cast are set to return, including Florence Pugh, Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin, as well as franchise newcomer Robert Pattinson. Momoa, who was in the first film, but not the second, is set to reprise his role in Dune: Part Three.
UAE casting agency Miranda Davidson Studios has also been advertising to fill roles for extras in a “Hollywood blockbuster” being filmed in Abu Dhabi. While the company did not specify which film the casting calls were for, they are looking for babies, children, teens and adult women for roles for a "Hollywood project filming in Liwa”.
Their call for actors "with brown skin and curly hair" also matches the descriptions of the Fremen, the tribe that inhabits Arrakis, who are distinguished by their fierce fighting abilities and adeptness at surviving in their planet's harsh conditions. Frank Herbert, author of Dune, from which the film is adapted, based the Fremen on the desert-dwelling Bedouin.
Zendaya and Bardem play Fremen in the film.
When is filming taking place?
While the exact dates of the shoots are yet to be confirmed, Miranda Davidson Studios said the expected job date for extras was between October and November. For their last casting call, for a girl who will serve as a “double” for the main child actor, availability requested for the actor is for 15 days, between October 29 and November 12 in Liwa and Al Ain. Dune: Part Two also filmed in November.
Momoa's arrival in the UAE is also a good sign that production is set to begin imminently.
What is Dune: Part Three about?
In the last film, Paul Atreides (Chalamet) united with the Fremen on Arrakis to seek revenge against House Harkonnen for the destruction of his family, eventually becoming emperor. Dune: Part Three will centre on the consequences of his power grab as he unleashes a "holy war" between houses and the fall-out with his love Chani (Zendaya), who is horrified by his transformation. It will be at least loosely based on 1969's Dune Messiah, the second book in Frank Herbert's acclaimed series.
About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Carzaty%2C%20now%20Kavak%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECarzaty%20launched%20in%202018%2C%20Kavak%20in%20the%20GCC%20launched%20in%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20140%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Automotive%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECarzaty%20raised%20%246m%20in%20equity%20and%20%244m%20in%20debt%3B%20Kavak%20plans%20%24130m%20investment%20in%20the%20GCC%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm kick-off UAE)
Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Cologne (5.30pm)
Mainz v Arminia Bielefeld (5.30pm)
Augsburg v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Bayern Munich (8.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Freiburg (10.30pm)
Sunday
VfB Stuttgart v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Union Berlin v Hertha Berlin (8pm)
Fixture and table
UAE finals day: Friday, April 13 at Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
- 3pm, UAE Conference: Dubai Tigers v Sharjah Wanderers
- 6.30pm, UAE Premiership: Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership – final standings
- Dubai Exiles
- Abu Dhabi Harlequins
- Jebel Ali Dragons
- Dubai Hurricanes
- Dubai Sports City Eagles
- Abu Dhabi Saracens
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20myZoi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Syed%20Ali%2C%20Christian%20Buchholz%2C%20Shanawaz%20Rouf%2C%20Arsalan%20Siddiqui%2C%20Nabid%20Hassan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2037%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Initial%20undisclosed%20funding%20from%20SC%20Ventures%3B%20second%20round%20of%20funding%20totalling%20%2414%20million%20from%20a%20consortium%20of%20SBI%2C%20a%20Japanese%20VC%20firm%2C%20and%20SC%20Venture%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
